Bjorg Borg is to play on grass in England for the first time since famously losing to John McEnroe in the men's 1981 final at Wimbledon.

The five time Wimbledon champion, who recently received a Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2006 BBC Sports Personality Awards, is to play at the 2007 Liverpool International Tennis Tournament in his first playing appearance in the UK for a decade - and the only one this year.

Organisers Northern Vision, who have announced that tickets are now on sale, are delighted the Swedish legend has chosen the annual tournament at Calderstone's Park to dust off his grass court shoes.

Anders Borg, Tournament Director, said: "It is fantastic for the tournament and for tennis fans everywhere that Bjorn has agreed to play. He hasn't played in the UK for over 10 years, but had heard of our unique format of ATP and legends and was intrigued to see for himself. To have him at Calderstones is a major coup for Liverpool and a testament to how the event has grown.

To be held from June 12 to 17, the Liverpool International is now in its sixth year and, outside Wimbledon, boasts more tennis than any British tournament with a men's, women's and legend's event. Previous years has attracted top ATP players such Marat Safin and Ivan Ljubicic as well as legends such as Martina Navratilova, Illia Nastase and Goran Ivanisevic.

With five successive Wimbledon titles and six French Open titles under his belt, Bjorn remains at the pinnacle of the all-time greats on grass by virtue of two statistics: his five successive victories between 1976 and 1980 and the fact that he also pulled off in three consecutive years the most difficult "double" in tennis, victory on clay at Roland Garros and on grass at Wimbledon.

Anders added: "We hope to see once again some of Borg's tennis genius and sparkle on centre court at Liverpool."

Bjorn will be gracing centre court for his first match on Wednesday 13th June to play doubles with the ever entertaining Mansour Bahrami and Pete McNamara, who have been crowd favourites at Liverpool for the last three years. Borg will be in Liverpool for three days and on Ladies Day (Friday 15th June) he will play his only singles match.

Councillor Warren Bradley, Leader of Liverpool City Council, said: ‘'Borg is one of the all-time greats not just in tennis but in professional sport. His never say die attitude and ability to claw back from behind was an inspiration to all who saw him play. I'm sure he will be a big hit in Liverpool this summer for what is set to be another great week of first class tennis.''

* In 1972, Borg became the youngest-ever winner of a Davis Cup match, at age 15.
* Borg won 11 Grand Slam singles titles out of 27 tournaments played, giving him a male open era record 41 percent winning rate.
* Borg won more French Open singles titles (6) than any other male player in tennis history.
* Borg won four consecutive French Open singles championships, an all-time record. He retired while on a winning streak of 28 consecutive matches at the French Open.
* Borg won more consecutive Wimbledon singles titles (5) than any man under modern rules.
* Borg's 41 consecutive match winning streak at Wimbledon remains an all-time record. Sampras came closest with 31 consecutive match wins. From 2003 through 2006, Federer has won 4 consecutive titles.
* Borg played in six consecutive Wimbledon singles finals - a record in the modern era.
* On the list of open era winning streaks, Borg is first (49 tour matches won in 1978). The only other men with winning streaks of 40+ matches are Vilas (46), Lendl (44), and McEnroe (42).
* Borg won his 11th Grand Slam singles title in 1981 at age 25, the youngest male to reach that number of titles. By comparison, Pete Sampras won his 11th at almost age 27, Roy Emerson at age 30, and Rod Laver at age 31.
* Borg won the BBC Sports Personality of the Year Overseas Personality Award in 1979.
* Borg retired aged 26 in 1983 with U.S. $3.6 million in career prize money, a record at the time.
* Borg was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1987 at only 30 years of age.

Greg Rusedski will warm up for Wimbledon by taking his serve-and-volley game to the grass courts of Calderstones Park. Rusedski has committed to competing at the Liverpool International Tennis Tournament, set for June 12-17 at Calderstones Park.

The owner of five grass-court titles, Rusedski joins David Ferrer, Vince Spadea and Robert Kendrick in the field. Hall of Famer Bjorn Borg is scheduled to play an exhibition match against 1987 Wimbledon winner Pat Cash.

"I’ve heard of the tournament from a good friend of mine, Ivan Ljubicic, who always enjoys his time in Liverpool, so when I was offered the opportunity to play I wanted to give it a go," Rusedski said. "There seems to be a lot happening in the city, especially since the announcement of Capital of Culture, so it will be interesting to see first hand what is happening up there. I look forward to June and hope to be able to hit a few balls with Borg on the practice courts."

Spadea returns for the fifth straight year. Kendrick, who competed at Calderstones Park last year, went on to push second-ranked Rafael Nadal to five sets at Wimbledon.

The WTA event is also taking shape with last year’s winner and 2006 Wimbledon junior champion, Caroline Wozniacki, returning to defend her title. American Ashley Harkleroad will also return.

The announced appearance of Borg, who will compete in the legends event, has resulted in record ticket sales and the need for centre court to be increased to a capacity of 3,300. The five-time Wimbledon champion will face Cash on Ladies Day (Friday, June 15). A limited number of tickets remain for Borg's only singles match.

Borg will play on Wednesday and Thursday with a host of other legends including Mansour Bahrami and Peter McNamara, as well as former Wimbledon doubles champion Peter Fleming and Cédric Pioline.

Bjorn Borg has announced that he will be unable to play at the Liverpool International Tennis Tournament which starts on Tuesday, but will still be travelling to meet his fans on Centre Court at Calderstones Park.

The Swedish legend was involved in a freak accident yesterday which has left him unable to play for at least six weeks on the advice of his doctor. "I'm so disappointed that I cannot play at Liverpool," said Borg. "I've been really looking forward to this event and have been practising hard for four months to get ready."

The accident occurred as Borg was trying to stop a dog-fight when his Golden Retriever was attacked by a German Shepherd at his home in Sweden. As Borg stepped in to seperate the two dogs he was bitten severely on his right leg by the German Shepherd whilst saving his dog's life. After receiving medical attention at Nakka Hospital in Stockholm, his doctor Wilhelm Engstrøm advised Borg not to put any weight on the leg for six weeks, effectively ruling out his British grass-court return at Calderstones Park.

The withdrawal of Borg from the tournament is a set-back but Tournament Director Anders Borg remains upbeat: "It is dissapointing but unfortunately these things happen with tennis tournaments, players get injured and pull out regularly. It's very sad that this happened now, only days before our event is due to start, but there is nothing we can do about it."

However, tennis fans disappointed that they won't be able to witness Borg in action won't miss out on seeing the Swedish Grand-Slam Master. Anders added: "I'm sorry the Liverpool public won't be able to see Borg play but we are relieved that he is well enough to make the journey over from Stockholm to meet the his fans in the North West. We remain confident he will play at Calderstones in 2008."

The organisers are looking for a replacement for Borg's singles match against Pat Cash on Ladies Day, Friday June 15th.

Former Wimbledon referee Alan Mills, who is officiating at Calderstones for the second year running, added: "There is nothing a tournament can do when these things happen. But I am extremely pleased that he is still coming and I will be able to walk out on Centre Court with him after all."

Ticket buyers for the days Borg was due to compete will be given priority booking for tickets for 2008's tournament.